High-speed watercraft



March 30, 1965 c. VlNTEN HIGH-SPEED WATERCRAFT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 50, 1963 kOl Cannes V N MarCh 1965 c. VINTEN 3,175,528

HIGH-SPEED WATERCRAFT Filed Sept. 30, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3.

FIG. 4.

IWVENTOL CHARLES V/NTBA/ A T-191s United States Patent 3,175,528 HIGH-SPEED WATERCRAFT Charles Vinten, Roselawn, Totteridge Common, London N.20, England Filed Sept. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 312,566 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Oct. 1, 1962, 37,157 62 3 Claims. (Cl. 114-66.5)

The present invention relates to watercraft, and particularly to watercraft which are designed to move at a high speed so that the craft planes over the surface of the water.

The present invention aims at providing a craft which is so designed that the upwards thrust on the craft is augmented by reaction with the bow waves created by passage of the craft through the water whereby the craft is lifted to the planing condition at a lower speed than is possible with conventional highspeed craft.

Accordingly the present invention provides a watercraft of which the hull has two substantially parallel keels, in which each keel has extending from it an upright outwardly-facing surface and a sloping downwardly-facing surface, and in which the sloping surfaces are connected together below the waterline of the craft by a nacelle surface extending longitudinally of the centre line of the craft whereby the bow waves generated by the bow portions when the craft is moving in the forward direction are designed to meet on the centre line of the craft and impinge on the nacelle surface.

An example of a craft of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of one form of watercraft;

FIG. 2 is an underneath plan view of one half of the craft shown in FIG. 1 taken to one side of the longitudinal centre line;

FIG. 3 is an end view from the bows of the craft, and

FIG. 4 is an end view from the stern.

As can be seen principally from FIG. 2, the plan view of the craft shown in the drawings in substantially rectangular and the keels 2 are substantially parallel to the centre line of the craft and are bowed slightly outwards.

Extending from each keel 2 is a substantially upright outwardly-facing slightly convex surface 4 which is in clined outwardly at a small angle to the vertical, and a downwardly-facing slightly convex surface 6 which slopes at a small angle .to the waterline 13 and projects slightly outboard of the hull.

Each outer surface 4 swells outwardly at its upper end in a sloping surface 8 which forms a greater angle to the vertical and is contiguous with an upright surface 10 whereby the surfaces 8 and 10 define sponsons. These sponsons provide an additional stabilizing force should the roll of the craft become excessive and also give a useful increase in the area of the upper surface of the craft.

The inner ends of the sloping surfaces 6 are interconnected by a convex nacelle surface 12 which runs substantially the length of the craft. The nacelle surface 12 extends below the waterline at at least the center portion of the craft but slopes upwardly towards the bows of th craft until at the extreme hows it is well above the waterline. The convexity of the surfaces 4, 6 and 12 provides stiffness and increases the space within the craft. However stiffness may be obtained by a concave formation of the surfaces or the surfaces may be plane.

The sloping surfaces 6 are also curved convexly in plan view, the curve being sharper at the bows of the craft than at the centre and aft portions.

Upon consideration of the various figures of the drawings it will be appreciated that as the craft moves forwardly through the water the outer surfaces 4 create very 3,175,528 Patented Mar. 30, 1965 ice little disturbance thereby generating only small bow waves but the effect of the surfaces 6 is to deflect the major portion of the water moved by passage of the craft towards the centre line of .the craft in the form of bow waves. These bow waves impinge on the nacelle surface at all speeds of the craft and as the speed increases there is an increasing reaction on the nacelle surface caused by the surface further deflecting the bow waves impinging on it. This thrust on the nacelle surface acts upwardly and augments the conventional hydrodynamic forces exerted on the submerged surfaces of craft. This augmenting force has the effect of lifting the craft vertically to enable the size of the bow waves to diminish until equilibrium is achieved between the conventional displacement forces on those surfaces submerged and the reactions on the nacelle surface. Energy losses are reduced because the normally wasted bow wave energy is made to produce lift and the smaller area of the surfaces thereby in contact with the moving water enables the craft to move at a faster speed for the same expenditure of energy when compared with a conventional craft having the same overall submerged surface area but without the configuration of the present craft.

As the speed of the craft rises further it lifts itself further and further out of the water until eventually a stage is reached when the major portion of the weight of the craft is taken on the outer marginal portions of the surfaces 6 and the craft planes over the surface of the water somewhat in the manner of a pair of water skis. When so planing water is still deflected by passage of the craft onto the nacelle surface but the reaction on this surface plays a less important role than at lower speeds.

Because the major portion of the work done by the engines of a watercraft designed to plane is expanded on lifting it to the planing condition, rather than keeping it moving at a highspeed when in the planing condition it will be seen that the present invention therefore enables craft to be built with less powerful motors but with substantially the same top speed compared with conventional craft which do not use the configuration of the craft of the present invention for augmenting the buoyancy forces.

It will be appreciated that the present invention resides in the shape of the hull of the craft and it is envisaged that this shape could be applied to flying boats or to seaplane floats. The shape could also be applied to vehicles designed to move over snow or soft mud and not solely through water as such and it is also envisaged that the craft could be fitted with retractable road wheels to make it amphibious. The present invention also does not hinge upon the propulsion system used. It is envisaged that conventional propellers could be used with conventional rudders, that the steerable waterjet propulsion could be used or that the craft could be propelled by air reaction propulsion means situated above the water line of the craft.

It is also envisaged that the flow of water past the craft could be enhanced by bleeding off boundary layers of water at selected portions of the hull through apertures therein, to prevent the generation of energy-absorbing eddies adjacent to the surfaces of the craft. The bled-off water could then be ejected from the stern of the craft at a speed greater than the forward speed thereof to provide a further addition to the propulsive thrust available.

I claim:

1. A planing hull for watercraft, said hull having sides which are substantially parallel in the fore and aft direction and two downwardly facing surfaces forming part of the bottom of the hull and inclined upwardly towards the centre line of the hull and being connected together below the water line of the hull by a nacelle surface extending longitudinally of the centre line of the 7 surfaces and are thereby caused to impinge on the nacelle surface. s

2. A planing hull for watercraft as claimed in claim 1 in which said downwardly facing surfaces project out- 7 board of the adjacent lower portions of the sides so as to act in the manner of water skis at'planing speeds.

3. A planing hull for watercraft, said hull having sides which are substantially parallel in the fore and aft direction and two downwardly facing convex surfaces forming part of the bottom of the hull and inclined upwardly at a small angle towards the centre line of the hull and,

being connected together below the water line of the hull by a convex nacelle surface of substantially the same length as the hull and extending longitudinally of the centre line of the hull at a lesser depth than the sides and rising above the water line at the bows, and said substantially parallel sides being upright at least int-he region of "and below the water line so that when the craft is moving in the forward direction at displacement speeds, bow

waves are generated predominantly by the downwardly facing inclined surfaces and are deflected inwardly to meet at the centre line of the hull by reason of the inclination of said surfaces and are thereby caused to impinge V on the nacelle surface. t

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 277,443 5/83 Birch. s a 114-62 987,Q59' 3/11 Frampton 114- 62 1,220,558 3/17 Richardson 11456 1,581,881 4/26 Smith 114-66.5 2,397,683 4/46 Nelson 114-665 2,474,667 6/49 Harvey 11466.5 2,725,027 11/55 Brandon et a1. 114-74 2,735,392 2/56 Cox 11466.5 2,989,939 6/61 Tatter 114-665 FERGUS s. MIDDLETON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A PLANNING HULL FOR WATERCRAFT, SAID HULL HAVING SIDES WHICH ARE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL IN THE FORE AND AFT DIRECTION AND TWO DOWNWARDLY FACING SURFACRS FORMING PART OF THE BOTTOM OF THE HULL AND INCLINED UPWARDLY TO WARDS THE CENTER LINE OF THE HULL AND BEING CONNECTED TOGETHER BELOW THE WATER LINE OF THE HULL BY A NACELLE SURFACE EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY OF THE CENTER LINE OF THE HULL AND BEING OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME LENGTH AS THE HULL BUT OF LESSER DEPTH THAN THE SIDES OF RISING ABOVE THE WATER LINE AT THE BOWS SO THAT WHEN THE CRAFT IS MOVING IN THE FORWARD DIRECTION AT DISPLACEMENT SPEEDS, BOW WAVES ARE GENERATED PREDOMINANTLY BY THE DOWNWARDLY FACING INCLINED SURFACES AND ARE DEFLECTED INWARDLY TO MEET AT THE CENTER LINE OF THE HULL BY REASON OF THE INCLINATION OF SAID SURFACES AND ARE THEREBY CAUSED TO IMPINGE ON THE NACELLE SURFACE. 